Riddles of Life
by grandiloquentCaecity
Summary: Gakuen AU. Arthur just got a job at the local video game store, and he is not too excited about it. One customer in particular really seems to rub him the wrong way. One American customer. USUK.
1. In Which Arthur gets a job

**Well, I really wanted to write something like this, so here it is. Hopefully I can remain on top of updates... Sis, that's your job. Remind me.**

**Disclaimer: Trust me, you could tell if I owned Hetalia. Clearly, I don't.**

**.oO:0:Oo.**

"Kiku! There you are!" Arthur Kirkland called out to his friend Kiku Honda when he spotted him across the quad of their high school.

"Ah, Arthur. What is it?" The other boy asked when Arthur caught up with him.

The Brit stopped for a second to catch his breath. He had been looking for the Japanese boy all over the school, after all, "I really need a job. Do you know where I might be able to get one?"

Kiku paused for a second and though when he remembered something, "Well, I do believe Im Yong Soo got fired from his job the other day..." He said, referring to his cousin, "At the video game store."

"Video game store?" Arthur blurted, the distaste apparent in his voice.

"Do you need a job or not?"

.oO:0:Oo.

"Well Mr. Kirkland, it seems your credentials all check out. You're hired."

"Yay." Arthur gave his new boss a polite smile, but on the inside, he was grimacing.

.oO:0:Oo.

Arthur's first day of work was a far cry from exciting so far. He showed up at the store after school and was instantly stuck manning the cash register. Where he stood two and a half hours later. And not a single customer had come in. To keep himself busy, Arthur had started working on his homework, but he was almost done which would leave him with the task of finding something else to distract him for the rest of his shift. But, he was momentarily distracted when he heard the bell attached to the front door ring. He looked up and lo and behold, there stood Alfred F. Jones. One of the most popular kids in school. The boy swaggered up nonchalantly to the counter where Arthur was.

"Has the copy of the Legend of Zelda Collectors Edition I ordered come in yet?" He asked, then looked at Arthur for the first time, "Hey, you're not Yong Soo. You're that one kid from my history class. Arthur, right?"

"Your intelligence astounds me." Arthur replied, rolling his eyes, the sarcasm positively dripping from his voice, "If you must know, Yong Soo was fired."

Alfred blinked, "Fired? Why?" Arthur's sarcasm had evidently rolled right off of him.

"Don't know." The Brit shrugged, "Kiku never told me."

"Well then. Anyway, has my game come in yet?"

"Let me check." Arthur replied and began looking for it, "Here it is." He stood up and placed the game on the counter.

"Sweet! See you next time!" Alfred paid and bid him farewell. Next time? There was going to be a next time? Arthur could already tell spending too much time around this git was going to test his last nerves.

**.oO:0:Oo.**

**There. The first chapter is done. It's really short, but the others will be longer. I promise. Anyway, please review!**


	2. In Which Arthur discovers Zelda

**Well guys, I must say. I was truly thrilled by the reception to the first chapter, so I decided to update soon!**

**Oh, and for those of you familiar with my (horrid) updating patterns, at the very least, the first few chapters or so will come out pretty quickly because there is a certain part of the story that will be introduced in about chapter 3 or 4 that I am really looking forward to. **

**Disclaimer: Her Imperial Highness, Princess Ce'Nedra, jewel of the House of Borune and the loveliest flower of the Tolnedran Empire does not own Hetalia Axis Powers (neither does she own the Belgariad, though she did just use the first 19 words of the 3rd book in the series just now)**

**-.-**

Arthur had barely been on the job two days and he already hated it. It wasn't the work per se (even though that was a far cry from fun), but the actual store it's self. He had just never seen the point of pushing buttons and shooting something on a screen. It was not his idea of fun at all. **((now don't get me wrong. I adore video games. I am a total gamer. This is just how I think Arthur would feel about it))**

At least _he _hadn't shown up again so far. Yet, that promise of next time still lingered in the air, seeming to haunt Arthur at every turn. The bell on the door rang, signaling a customer entering.

"Yo! Arthur! Long time no see!"

Arthur groaned and turned to see none other thank Alfred. Back again. Just as he promised.

"Weren't you here just the other day? What could you possible need a new game for?" Arthur snapped as Alfred swaggered over to the counter and hoisted himself up onto it like he belonged there.

"Well, I heard some of my friends talking about this cool video game. Now don't get me wrong, I adore the Legend of Zelda, but I have already played those games before. I just _had_ to buy the thing, so I could complete my collection, you know. Anyway, some of my friends were talking about this game Portal on this thing called the Orange Box and I thought it sounded really cool and fun, so I wanted to get it. Therefore, you see me here now in front of- well, more of next to you." The American explained as if it were the most normal thing in the world. Suffice to say, Arthur just gave him a look that positively screamed 'what the hell.'

"And so you deem it fit to burst in here and ruin my perfectly peaceful day?" The Brit replied scathingly.

"Precisely." Alfred quipped and scanned the room. "Oh my gosh! It's gone!"

"Wait- What? What are you talking about!" Arthur demanded, looking at Alfred like he was crazy.

"The thing! That was there!" The American pointed to the space next to a display case, "It's not there anymore!"

"Oh-OH! You mean that cardboard cut out thing they had?" Arthur finally realized what in the world the other was referring to.

"Yeah! That thing!" Alfred nodded eagerly, "What happened to it?"

"There's a different game in the display case now. And that one does not require that cardboard cut out nor did it come with one of it's own. Hence the lack of cardboard cut out." Arthur replied indifferently.

"Oooooh! That makes sense!" Alfred exclaimed brightly and Arthur just rolled his eyes. The American was really getting on his nerves. Arthur sighed and tuned out as Alfred began to ramble on about the various video game series and individual games he liked.

"You know what, I bet you would like the Legend of Zelda." Alfred stated, snapping Arthur out of his state.

"Ha?"

"I think you would like it. I mean, it's not senseless violence and stuff like a lot of other games." The American explained, "I can tell that you're a smart person. The sort of person who likes puzzles and stuff." Arthur was stunned at how correct that statement was. That Alfred had been able to read him like that when he normally couldn't read a situation if it slapped him in the face, "Those games involved a lot of puzzles and stuff. They can be really hard if you aren't used to how the games work. Trust me on that one." Alfred let out a good natured laugh and Arthur found himself blushing quite against his will.

"Your point?" Arthur asked, the picture of composure, cocking one eyebrow. Yet, his face still contained hints of the red, no matter how fervently he wished it otherwise

"You should try playing them sometime!" Alfred said, still incredibly cheerful, "I should probably get going. Mattie will get mad at me if I'm not home in time for dinner." He jumped off the counter and went over to the xbox 360 section, picking up a copy of the Orange Box. He walked back over to the counter, a huge sunny smile on his face. Arthur could feel his face heating up once again. He was completely baffled as to why that twat was making him blush so much. He had never really thought much about romance before, so it's not like there was zero chance of him being gay. He just never really thought about it. But of all people, why Alfred? The guy he has the least chance of ever hooking up with.

-.-

"Hey Artie, hows it hangin'?" Alfred burst into the shop. He had only been there the day before, yet here he was yet again.

"What did you call me?" Arthur asked, a dark, threatening undertone to his voice.

"Artie!" Alfred replied simply, completely ignorant of the tone of voice Arthur had just used and the pain that it implied.

"Don't call me that." Arthur snapped, "And what are you doing here? You were just here yesterday. You can't possibly need a new game."

"I'm not here for a game for me." Alfred situated himself on the counter once again and Arthur couldn't help but wonder why he was the only customer that ever seemed to show up, "I'm here for you!"

"Eh!" Arthur could feel his face turn a brighter red than those tomatoes his friend Antonio liked so much.

"Yup!" Alfred whipped a black DS, "I would have preferred to have you start on something like the Ocarina of Time or Wind Waker, but Phantom Hourglass will have to do since the others aren't portable." Alfred explained as he turned on the system. He started a new game and handed it to Arthur, talking him through the first bit. The Brit could feel a small blush at their proximity, but couldn't help but enjoy himself at least a little bit. Also, for some strange reason, no other customers showed up for the rest of Arthur's shift, not that he was complaining too much.

-.-

"How has the job been going so far?" Kiku asked, sliding into the seat next Arthur in the cafeteria the next day.

"Pretty good, I guess." Arthur replied with a half shrug (made difficult by the fact that his head was resting in his hands), "Nothing too bad." His tone was distant as he stared across the room at a certain American blond.

-.-

**There! Chapter two is done! That was a fun one to write. **

**What can I say? Phantom Hourglass was my first Zelda game. **

**Also, the part where Alfred was all like 'The thing that was there! It's not there anymore!' I actually said that the other day, referring to the bus shelter thing by my house. I knew instantly I had to use the line in this fic. **

**Anyway, I should update in the next few days. Who knows. Please review!**


	3. In Which we meet the antagonist

**Well, I really wanted to update, so I decided to do so. I also figured that if I updated now, it would leave a proper time frame so that I could update one more time before I leave for camp on Friday! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Huh- wha? Nah, don't own Hetalia. Too busy listening to insanely catchy Vocaloid songs to own anything or even get a job. But I'm a high schooler, so it's all good. **

**Dudes, this chapter we finally branch out from the store for real!**

**-.-**

Arthur did not know, for the life of him, what to make of Alfred F. Jones. At first he thought that he was just your average, stuck up, brainless popular kid. But he had been visiting Arthur at his job almost every day and Arthur was surprised to find himself actually liking the kid.

"There must be something wrong with me." Arthur banged his head on the lunch table a few days later.

"I'm sure there's nothing wrong with you." Kiku said with a knowing smirk/smile that Arthur didn't see due to the fact that he still had his forehead connected with the table. The Japanese boy laid a consoling hand on Arthur's back and the smirk/smile grew into a full out smirk.

-.-

Lunch ended and that meant that it was time for History class. Their school had block scheduling, so that meant only four classes day. Of course, each class was an hour and a half long, but it meant a subject only had to be taken for half the year.

Arthur slid into his seat in the back of the class room and took out his materials, prepping himself for the class. A slight bit of commotion in the form of a group of laughing, talking teenagers entered the room. That meant only one thing. The 'popular kids' had entered the vicinity. Arthur just rolled his eyes and went on with his own business. He ignored the populars, and they in turn ignored his geeky self.

"Yo Artie, hows it hangin'?"

Arthur jumped slightly and looked to his right, where he was none other than Alfred seated. Arthur was surprised, despite the friend ship they seemed to have in the video game store, this was the first time Alfred had actually talked to him in school.

"Eh?" Arthur replied dumbly, still not quite believing what he was seeing. But before Alfred could repeat his question, a blonde girl called out to Alfred.

"Alfred!" Her whiny voice sent Arthur on edge instantly, "What are you doing talking to him?" She demanded, referring to him like he was no better than the gum stuck to the bottom of her shoe.

"Don't worry, Anna Sophia! **(1)**" Alfred replied with a good natured laugh, "Artie's cool!" He slung an arm around Arthur's shoulders in a friendly way, which made Arthur blush a little bit (though he did manage to hide it- thankfully).

"Come on!" Anna walked over and grabbed Alfred's other arm and started trying to drag him away.

"Fine, fine." Alfred laughed again, allowing himself to be pulled by Anna Sophia, "Talk to you later, Artie!" He smiled over his shoulder and Arthur waved slightly at the retreating figure before turning back to his books. What was happening to him?

-.-

"Man, I know Anna Sophia and I are supposed to be friends, but she really get's on my nerves some times." Alfred complained that afternoon, back at the store. He was sitting on the counter yet again while Arthur leaned against next to him, playing Alfred's black DS.

"Then why did you let her drag you away?" Arthur asked, eyes never leaving the screen. They never seemed to have any customers during his shift, just a few and those were rare. Besides Alfred, that is.

Alfred shrugged, "I dunno. I guess appearances sake or something." The American scratched the back of his head and Arthur just shook his head.

"You shouldn't let something trivial like image control your life." Arthur said.

"You see, that's what I like about you!" Alfred replied with a grin, "You're totally comfortable with yourself and you don't care what others think! I wish I could be like that."

"Then just don't let yourself care." Arthur shrugged, "That's how I do it. I mean, the only people who's opinions I actually care about are the ones who like me for who I am. Everyone else could just fall in a ditch for all I care." Alfred laughed loudly at this and Arthur felt the hint of a blush rise.

-.-

After that, Alfred seemed to make a point to say hi to Arthur every time they passed each other in the halls, and almost every time it seemed that Anna Sophia wasn't far, shooting Arthur with a venomous glare. The reason for the girl's hatred was completely beyond him, and seeing as he really couldn't care less about what she thought about him, he just let it pass. She was Alfred's problem, not his.

Alfred didn't seem to notice the girl's hostility, but Arthur could tell just by looking at Anna Sophia that she would confront Alfred about her issue with Arthur some day, and he was interested to see how that would turn out.

-.-

"Arthur! Arthur!" came the excited cry of an eager twelve year old as Arthur entered the house.

"Hey Peter." Arthur greeted, mussing his kid brother's hair in an affectionate way.

"Did you get anything from the store today?" Peter asked, his eyes alight with hope.

"Not today," Arthur replied with a short laugh, "But maybe soon."

"Cool!" And with that, Peter bounded off to whatever he was doing before Arthur got home. They may not always get along, but Arthur and his brother were actually very close. Their single mother was gone most of the day working, and she was usually very tired when she got home. It wasn't that she worked a bad job or many, her job was just very demanding and tiring. She was a social worker and sometimes, the kids she dealt with could be a real handful. Frankly, the parents could often times be even worse. But because she was gone a lot, Arthur and Peter had bonded a lot over the years and had learned to depend on each other.

-.-

The next time Arthur found himself behind the counter at the video game store was Monday. That day, the history teacher and announced a big history project and Arthur was trying to think of what topic to do it on when the doors slammed open.

"Arthur! I need your help!"

-.-

**Ha! Cliffie! I know exactly where this is going and so does my sister.**

**(1)- Anna Sophia is the character made up by my sister, I am a Purple Crayon, and is featured in her stories It All Started With A Shot of Tequila (a USUK story) and more recently in Dropped Picks Broken Sticks (a PruCan). You should all check them out!**

**Anyway, as I said, I wanted to get in a couple of updates before I went out of town to camp. So here this is! I hope you all enjoyed! Please review!**


	4. In Which Alfred proves he has a brain

**Okay guys, I am abut to head off to camp for a week, so I wanted to get a chapter out before then. So here it all is!**

**Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to bother to come up with a creative disclaimer. Do you think I could actually own Hetalia?**

**-.-**

"Arthur! I need your help!"

Alfred burst into the store, flinging the doors wide open, almost smashing them into the wall. He had a frantic, worried look in his eyes and he promptly stalked over to the counter, where Arthur was, as always.

"What's wrong?" Arthur asked, concerned that there was something serious going on. But why did Alfred need _his _help with that.

"Artie." Alfred almost slammed his hands down on the counter, his head down, "You know that history project they assigned today?"

"You mean the really big one? Worth half our grade?" Arthur asked. He had a feeling that he knew where this was going.

"Yeah, that's the one." Alfred's head came up, "I need your help! I need you to be my partner for the project!"

"Why me?" Arthur asked bluntly, arms crossed over his chest as he stared Alfred down, daring him to answer, "Why not one of your other 'friends' in our class."

"Because! I need to actually get a good grade or else I'll fail the class and have to take summer school!" Alfred exclaimed, near frantic now, "They may be good for a laugh outside of class, but I need someone who actually has a brain between their ears!"

Arthur was a bit surprised. So Alfred _did _realize his friends were dumber than doorknobs, which proved that he was smarter than them. He was probably capable of doing well on the project, he just needed someone there to guide him, not distract him. And, as Arthur realized, he was probably the best person for the job.

"What's in it for me?" Arthur asked. I mean, he needed to get something out of this.

"I-I- I'll make you popular!" Alfred tried.

"What the hell, you sodding git. I don't want to be bloody popular!"

"Oh my gosh!" Alfred exclaimed, grabbing Arthur by the shoulders, "You sounded so totally British just now!"

"Oh my gosh!" Arthur exclaimed, blatantly mocking Alfred, "You sounded so totally ADD just now!"

Alfred blinked for a second then burst out laughing for a minute before he became serious once again and gave Arthur a pleading look, "Arthur please?" Arthur sighed.

"Alright. I'll do it."

"Thank you!"

-.-

The next day, Arthur sat in the history classroom, waiting for class to begin. The teacher may have introduced the project yesterday, but today was the day where the entire thing was going to be explained.

As he thought about potential topics for them to study, Alfred slid into the seat next to him. He had apparently arrived on his own, separate from his usual entourage. "Howdy partner." He said by way of greeting with a grin.

"Howdy?" Arthur asked incredulously, one eyebrow raised. Alfred only grinned even wider as Arthur shook his head.

"Oooh Alfred!" Called a whiny, high pitched voice that could only belong to none other than Anna Sophia. "Alfred there you are!" She ran up, completely ignoring Arthur and tried to slip her arms around Alfred's neck, but the boy moved out of the way just in time. She stood back up, pretending nothing had happened, that she hadn't just been rejected by Alfred, "Oh Alfred! Let's be partners for this stupid project thing!" She leaned down on his desk in what was, Arthur mused, supposed to be a seductive pose, but actually made her look like her body was contorted by rigor mortis. "Maybe we can work on things besides the project." She purred, again trying to be seductive and failing miserably.

"Sorry Anna, no can do." Alfred replied, his ever present grin widening.

"What! Why not!" Anna Sophia shot up, completely not believing what she was hearing. The thought of Alfred turning her down had never crossed her mind because to her, it was completely inconceivable.

"Because I'm working with Artie here!" Alfred flung a arm around Arthur's shoulder, causing the smaller boy to lose his balance a bit and fall slightly toward Alfred. Anna Sophia shot him a glare and he could sense that her hatred of him had just rose another level. Oh well, like he could care.

-.-

It was after school and Arthur was on his way to Alfred's house. They had decided to get a start on the project that day and Alfred had volunteered his house for their headquarters of sorts.

"My parents will be at work and Mattie doesn't make much noise unless he's watching hockey, so it'll be a good place to work." He had explained and Arthur had just shrugged. He would rather not show Alfred the apartment he shared with his mother and brother just yet. It wasn't that it was small and dirty. It was actually a nice sized apartment and was kept meticulously clean by Arthur himself, but he just wasn't sure it was the sort of place Alfred would think was cool.

"Here we are!" Alfred spread his arms wide, indicating to the house in front of them. It was huge! Not mansion size or anything, just a large, nice house. Definitely nicer than Arthur's apartment, "It's not much, but it's home, you know." Alfred smile.

"Not much! I think it's amazing!" Arthur stared at the house. It was built in a Victorian style, complete with bright red bricks, black wrought iron, wooden shutters, and ivy covering the place. There was even an attic turret with a circular stained glass window. The grounds were also impressive. They were well kept, a garden on one side of the house, and a few hundred yards out from the house on all sides, the woods began. There was probably a pond in the back. Suffice to say, it was Arthur's dream house.

"You would like this style." Alfred teased, punching the smaller boy playfully in the shoulder, "Come on, let's go in."

They entered the house and the inside was just as wonderful as the outside, in Arthur's opinion. "Up here." Alfred gestured for Arthur to follow him up the winding wooden staircase. They eventually reached his room, which, as Arthur had predicted, was quite large. The walls were were white and covered with all sorts of posters from video games to bands and other things. In one corner was his bed with a nightstand next it. He had a dresser next to the closet and a bathroom attached to the room. But that was only one half of the room. The other half had a large, square coffee table where a lime green laptop rested, with a couch and a couple chairs surrounding it, and a huge tv facing the couch. The ground in front of the tv was covered in video game stuff, things like consoles and game cases. Off to the side, next to the door that led to the small porch, was a desk with a desktop computer on it. It was a very impressive room. And surprisingly clean, knowing it's owner. Alfred walked over and dumped his bag onto one of the stuffed arm chairs before collapsing onto the couch. Arthur placed his bag on the other chair and sat on the couch as well, but not too close to the other boy.

"The teacher said that for the project we need to choose an event in history and then analyze both sides of the issue. I was thinking we-"

"We should do the Revolutionary War." Alfred interrupted, sitting up and looking excited. Arthur blinked.

"Actually, that's a really good idea. I can represent the British side and you can be the American side." Arthur said.

"Sweet!" Alfred pumped his fist into the air, "This project is gonna be awesome! We're gonna blow everyone away with it and get an A!"

"Haha, sure." Arthur laughed at his partner's enthusiasm, "Now sit down at let's get started."

"Yeah, yeah." Alfred plopped down and they began to work.

-.-

**Yes! That project is the part I was so eagerly looking forward to! I bet you all saw the Revolutionary War bit coming, that or WWII. Anyway, I hope you all liked it, cause I'm not updating for another week at the least. Please review!**


	5. In Which the authoress finally updates

_**EVERYONE GO RE-READ THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER! I ADDED SOMETHING REALLY COOL!**_

**Yup, I had be planning on adding that part since BEFORE I wrote this, and then I forgot. So I had to go back and add it.**

**Sorry for the long wait people, I had camp, then I spent 48 hours straight with my friend Maddy (and we are hanging out with her once again as I type this) and then the cord to my laptop stopped working for some reason and I was using the mini laptop for a few days and let me tell you, that thing is a bitch to type on. And then I was suffering from the oh so infamous thing known as writers block. Anyway, please enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, but I DO own Phantom Thief Lilac, an original comic by myself and a friend of mine on DeviantART. Check it out! Also, the name for the WII was my idea!**

**-.-**

"So." Alfred said. He was currently leaning against the back of his couch, his arms spread down the back and his head titled backwards. He was also balancing a half full (not half empty) bottle of soda on his forehead, "What exactly are we going to do for this." He and Arthur hadn't been working on their project long, and therefore they were still in the planning stages.

"Well, we need to debated the two opposing opinions of a certain event in history. Now, seeing as we chose the Revolutionary war, you will be arguing based on the feelings of the colonists, where as I will take my arguments from the British." Explained Arthur, but before he could continue, Alfred interrupted him.

"I think we should dress up."

"What was that?"

"We should dress up! In revolutionary style costumes!" Alfred flung his hands up excitedly.

"And where, pray tell, would we get said costumes?" Arthur asked, arms crossed, one eyebrow cocked.

"Oh, trust me," Alfred said with a sudden sinister look, "I have my sources."

"Um, ok then. I'll leave that to you." Arthur replied with a sweat drop, "Now, can we please get to researching?"

"Ah! Right! Of course!"

-.-

"Artieeeeee!" Alfred cried weakly.

"What is it, Alfred?" Arthur asked, completely unsympathetic, his eyes never leaving the computer screen.

"Can we take a break? _Please?"_

"What ever for? We've only been studying for about an hour and a half."

"But that is way longer than I've ever worked on something in a study session like this!" Alfred said and Arthur did not doubt that at all, "So, we totally deserve a break!"

"Uh huh." Arthur turned to face Alfred, arms crossed, "And what do you suggest we do during said break?"

"Simple!" He reached for something sitting next to his TV, "We play this!" Alfred held up a box.

"Wii?"

"No, no, no. Not wii, wII, it's pronounced like wii two. See, how the I's are capitalized so that it makes the roman numeral for two?"

Arthur blinked in slight surprise, "That's actually quite clever." He admitted, "But I've never heard about it. And you would think that working at a video game store would let me hear about the latest gaming stuff."

"Well, you see, I have connections." That sinister look of Alfred's was back, but Arthur just gave him a curious look.

"You're a well connected person, aren't you."

"You could say that," Alfred replied with a shrug, but that sinister look was still on his face, "Anyway, can we _please _take a break?"

"I guess we can take a _short _break, if you insist." He relented.

"Yes!" Alfred cheered, "You're the best Artie!" He glomped the smaller male, who in turn felt his cheeks heat up.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Arthur pushed him away, eyes averted, his blush starting to fade.

-.-

"Dang, Arthur! You said you don't like video games, but you're a natural!" Alfred said, "You've beat me almost every time!" He flexed his hand. The controller for the wII was much different from the original. Instead of a remote like device, it was an adjustable glove, and the buttons were on the finger tips and palm. The nun-chuck remained the same, simply because you just need a joystick type thing in video gaming. They had been playing the wII version of wii sports, only that had a lot more game options and types. They had been playing a sword fighting game, and as Alfred said, Arthur had beat him almost every time.

"That's because you randomly wave your sword around, hoping for a hit. I, on the other hand, use logic and strategy to look for openings and then attack accordingly." Arthur replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He hated to admit it, but he was having a lot of fun. And seeing the look of utter disbelief on Alfred's face every time he beat him _obviously _had _nothing _to do with it. Obviously.

"Like I said, a natural." Alfred said, taking off his glove. Arthur promptly followed suit.

"So, have you finally accepted your defeat and decided to return to our studying, brat?" Arthur asked, all high and mighty like.

"Not a chance, old man." Alfred replied, causing Arthur to sputter indignantly, "We're just switching consoles to the original wii. I wanna see how you do on Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess."

"Bring it on."

-.-

"That was fun, we should do that again sometime!" Alfred commented as he walked Arthur to the front door. It was a few hours later and they had not got back to studying after all, and had spent quite a while playing Twilight Princess as well as a few other games.

"I think we should do more studying next time." Arthur replied, shouldering his back pack.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Alfred waved his hand nonchalantly. Just at that moment, the garage door opened and in walked Alfred's mother, "Oh, hey mom."

"Hello dear!" She greeted back, but then she spotted Arthur, "Oh, and who is this?"

"This is my friend Arthur, we're doing a project together for history class." Alfred explained.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Jones." Arthur replied with a slight smile and a gentlemanly nod of the head.

"Oh, and he's such a little gentleman!" Mrs. Jones gushed before turning back to her son, "Is your little friend staying for dinner?"

Alfred turned to Arthur, one eyebrow raised questioningly, "I dunno, do you want to?" he asked.

Arthur shrugged, "Sure, why not. I don't see any reason why not to."

"Wonderful!" Mrs. Jones clapped her hands together joyfully, "Let me go get started on that! You two just run on up to Alfred's room. Oh, and tell Matthew that dinner shouldn't be too long."

"Okay, mom."

Arthur and Alfred made their way back to Alfred's room, where Arthur called his mother to inform her that he would be staying for dinner. "Now," the Brit said, snapping his phone shut and turning to Alfred, "We've had more than enough of a break. Let's get back to studying." He said in a tone that left no room for objection.

-.-

Dinner had been a pleasant affair. Both of Alfred's parents had been delightful people, who appreciated his manners and polite behavior. They were also quite interested in the fact that he came from England. Matthew, Alfred's brother, had also turned out to be very nice. Frankly, Arthur didn't see how such a nice, delightful family had produced someone like Alfred, but the world had it's mysteries.

Now it was the day after that, and Arthur had work. He was actually starting to like his job at the video game store more and more, especially after all the gaming he and Alfred had done the day before. As always, it was a quiet day, which obviously meant that Alfred was bound to burst in any minute.

"Artieeee!"

"Well speak of the devil, and the devil shall appear." Arthur muttered to himself under his breath before turning to face Alfred but paused when he saw that the boy was carrying a large, cardboard box. "What is that?" He demanded, pointing to the box.

"Our costumes!" Alfred replied gleefully, setting the box down on the counter.

"Already?" Arthur replied, very surprised at the speed at which they arrived.

"Yup! Like I said, I am a very well connected man." And with that, he pulled out a red jacket and handed to to Arthur, "Yours."

Arthur slipped it on. It fit perfectly. He turned to Alfred and promptly demanded, "Where did you get my sizes?"

"That _that_ is a secret." Alfred replied with a nod of the head.

"You know what, I'm going to ignore this blatantly stalkerish behavior just to say that these are amazing! They look like something right out of the revolutionary period itself!" Arthur held up the jacket to admire it properly.

"I know." Alfred said, a smug look on his face, "I got them from the best."

-.-

A few nights later, Arthur lay in bed. The project was almost done. In just a few days, they would present it in front of the class and that would it. They would have no real reason to hang out outside of school anymore. And why did that make Arthur feel so sad?

-.-

**Finally done! Oh my gosh, I am so sorry how long it took me to finish this! I just had some really bad writers block for a while! But it's finally done!**

**Heh, I burned the tip of the middle finger on my left hand last night when I was cooking, and so now it feels kinda weird to type! At least it doesn't hurt anymore...**

**And can I just say, I am totally proud of that wII thing! I came up with it a few days ago and my sister and I spazzed at how clever and perfect it was. They should totally call the next wii that!**

**Anyway, hopefully I update sooner this time! Please tune in next time!**


	6. In Which the chapter is in Alfred's POV

**Sorry for the wait, I have been really busy lately, what with marching band camp and then school starting today, not to mention my muse kinda abandoned me _again_, but I decided to update in order to celebrate my first day of AP US History!**

**Anyway, a while ago, I was sitting there, reading I Have All Summer to Fall for You by Silver and Gray (great PruCan fic, by the way) when I had this idea, and it was too good to pass up. I then proceeded to run into my little sisters room, who, despite it being 9:45 AM, was still asleep... So what if I make a habit of getting up at 7:45 on summer break? My sister likes to claim I am not human, and then I simply reply with that she's right, and that I'm actually from a small planet in the vicinity of Betelgeuse... Okay, I admit it, I have been listening to way to much of the original Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy radio show, but it's sooooooooooooo good. Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Hetalia and I still think you should all go read Phantom Thief Lilac.**

**-.-**

_- Alfred's POV-_

This was great! He totally lucked out, getting Artie to work on the history project with him! Artie was a cool person, but, obviously, not as cool as Alfred. Obviously. Plus he was smart. Smart enough to actually get them a good grade on the project, unlike almost all of his other friends and school.

Only problem was, he got way too into the project. After all, they had been studying for a whole _hour and a half!_ Well, when he says studying, he means more of Arthur pouring over the books and internet, writing down things like a madman, where as he occasionally flipped through his book or briefly scanned a website.

What was he doing the rest of the time? Well, looking at Artie, of course! He could be so cute when he was researching, his eyebrows scrunched up in concentration, the eraser of his pencil resting against his lip. It was just too cute, Alfred had a hard time looking away. Finally, he could take it no longer. They needed a break.

"Artieeeeeeee" Alfred cried in what he thought was an very endearing voice.

"What is it, Alfred." Arthur replied, still looking at the computer screen, seemingly unaffected by the amazingly endearing tone Alfred just used.

"Can we take a break? _Please?_" Alfred begged, giving Arthur his best puppy dog eyes.

"What ever for? We've only been studying for about an hour and a half."

And, well, you should all know what happened after that.

-.-

"See you later, Artie!" Alfred called, waving frantically after the Brit as he walked home after dinner.

"What a wonderful boy, that Arthur is." Alfred's mother said as he walked back into the kitchen, where she was cleaning up after dinner.

"Yeah, Artie is pretty cool." Alfred replied with a grin, taking a coke out of the fridge.

"You should bring him over again some time." Mrs. Jones said, taking the pop out of her son's hand before he could open it and placing it back in the fridge.

"Whatever you say, mom." Alfred laughed as he headed back up to his own room.

-.-

Once he got back up to his room, Alfred logged onto his email to check his messages when he got an instant message over skype.

_The costumes you asked for are ready._

_Awesome! Are you sure about the sizes?_

_Trust me, my source couldn't be more accurate. Anyway, have I ever steered you wrong?_

_Too many times to count._

_I should bash your face in with a frying pan for that._

_Lol, whatever you say. I'll drop by tomorrow to pick them up._

_Ok, I'll have them ready for you._

_K, see you then!_

And with that, Alfred logged off and twirled around in his chair. These costumes were gonna be so awesome, they were gonna blow Artie's mind! A good thing he thought to prepare them in advance, with the help of a certain friend of his. He couldn't wait to see Arthur's reaction the next day!

-.-

"Artieeee!" Alfred called as he burst into the video game store where Arthur worked, carrying a large cardboard box. He saw Arthur mutter something under his breath before turning to him.

"What is that?" The Brit demanded, referring to the box.

"Our costumes!" Alfred replied gleefully, internally bouncing up and down with excitement. He couldn't wait to see Artie's face.

"Already?" The incredulous look on Arthur's face was alone priceless, not to mention down right adorable.

Yup! Like I said, I am a very well connected man." Alfred said smugly as he pulled out the red jacked for Arthur, handing it to him, "Yours." The look on the other's face was brilliant. Part disbelief that the costumes had come so fast, part amazement at how accurate they looked, and all adorable.

Arthur had a certain look of wonder as he slipped the jacket on. It fit perfectly, as would be expected. Alfred would have to thank her for doing such a great job on the costumes later. Then, Arthur turned to Alfred, still wearing the jacket, and looking a bit angry (yet still cute) and promptly demanded, "Where did you get my sizes?"

"That, _that_ is a secret." Alfred replied, totally overjoyed at how well it had all gone.

-.-

A few days later, Alfred was helping his mother clean up after dinner. The project was almost done, and they would be presenting it in a few days. It was with out a doubt the best project that he had ever done, even if that was mostly due to Arthur, but it was all cool. Plus, he liked hanging out with the British boy. It was really different from his other friends at school. Especially Anna Sophia. Alfred let out an involuntary shudder as he though of the girl.

"Alfred," His mother asked, turning to him, "When is that friend Arthur of yours coming over again? He was such a nice boy, I hope that you two get together more."

"So do I, mom, so do I." Alfred replied wistfully.

**-.-**

**Okay, I know it's a bit short, but that's where I wanted to end the chapter. I promise the next one will be longer! I really do!**


	7. In Which the chapter is informative

**Yeah, yeah, I know. It's been forever since I last updated. I _was _using the excuse earlier that I was going to wait till we reached our American Revolution unit in APUSH only, well, I just finished the class the other day, so... All I can say is that life and writers block got in the way. Some of you may have no idea how much that can impede your writing. I mean, I was gonna update sooner, I even opened the doc on my first day of spring break, but then I went and spent the next three days at Anime Detour (which was absolutely amazing!), so I'm just getting to him. **

**But at least my writing has improved (It better have, after spending ¼ of my day, every day in a creative writing class for the last quarter)!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, but I _do _have a stuffed tomato! And a pair of steampunk goggles, and a mini lolita hat, and a pokeball hat, and some other awesome stuff (anime cons are awesome).**

**-.-**

Arthur muttered under his breath, pacing back and forth across the room nervously as Alfred calmly watched him from the side of the room. It was the night before their project was due and the duo had met up at Alfred's house once again to do a dress rehearsal of sorts, just to be on the safe side. They had gone through everything multiple times, they knew their info, the costumes still fit perfectly, and everything was in order. Well, except for Arthur's nerves, that is.

"Dude, Artie, chill out." Alfred said, standing up slowly and walking over to the pacing Brit. Watching Arthur walk back and forth over and over was starting to make him dizzy. Alfred lay a hand on Arthur's shoulder, making the smaller male jump in surprise.

"Chill out? How can I chill out? We have a major presentation tomorrow!" His hands flew up to grab his hair, his eyes frantic.

"Dude, it's gonna be fine," Alfred sighed, "after all, this is way better than any other project I've ever done. Ever. Anyway, are you always like this before presentations?" Arthur looked up blankly at him for a second before replying,

"Yes."

-.-

"Okay, class," the teacher turned to face her students. Today was it, the big day. "who would like to go first?"

"We would!" Alfred's hand shot up, taking Arthur's up with it (he had grabbed him by the wrist), "Just give us a minute." And with that, Alfred dragged Arthur out of the room, a paper bag in his hand. The teacher merely shrugged as she opened up the power point the boys had made. A couple minutes later, Alfred rand back into the room with Arthur in tow. The class just stared at the now costumed pair.

"Oh my, what a wonderful idea, costumes," the teacher gushed upon seeing them, "And so accurate looking!"

"That's the idea, Ma'am!" Alfred flashed her his most charming smile as he dragged Arthur up to the front of the room, "Now, for our presentation: the Two Sides of the American Revolution."

-.-

Arthur took a deep breath. The project was going really well, so far. He looked out of the corner of his eyes at Alfred, who was enthusiastically delivering his information. They really had prepared a lot for this, and all that preparation was truly paying off. Arthur had already presented a brief overview of his side, and now it was Alfred's turn.

"And then the British made us American's pay insanely high taxes." Alfred said.

"Oh please," Arthur interjected, "Those were by no means insanely high taxes." Arthur quickly sucked in, he had said that on reflex- they had not planned that at all.

"Oh really." Alfred looked at him, giving him a signal to continue.

"Yes really," Arthur retorted, "When you were paying taxes of one shilling, back in London, we were paying _twenty-five _shillings just to pay off that bloody war _you_ caused."

"Well, ever consider the fact that we didn't _have _any money! Our entire society was based on trading commodities among each other, we barely even traded with other _countries _besides you. Tax collectors demanded money and all we could give them were things like livestock, and they refused that, asking for money that didn't exist."

"Well, we needed to get it from somewhere." Arthur retorted with a huff, crossing his arms.

"Then trade with other countries." Alfred said, hands on his hips.

"We did, don't you remember? Or did that not stick in your tiny, self-centered brains. But it wasn't enough, we needed more! It was your duty as British citizens to pay the same amount as those in the Mother Country."

"Well, if you _wanted_ us to pay equal taxes, then treat us like equals!"

"Equals! We gave you the rights you deserved! You even had a place in parliament!"

"What a load of crap, a place in parliament? Your so called _virtual representation _was complete bull, and you know it! You never addressed our rights! You treated us like possessions, like we were just something you owned! It wasn't until William Pitt in the French and Indian war that we were even treated like allies versus objects!"

"And who's fault was that war, pray tell?"

"Yours! In case you don't recall, the name of that war to the rest of the world happens to be the Seven Years War. You guys just decided that America was the best place to fight the French!"

"Boys! Boys!" The teacher interjected, pushing them apart. During their argument, neither had noticed how close they had gotten, noses almost touching. Arthur quickly turned away, his face bright red. He looked up through his bangs to watch his classmates, most of whom were suppressing laughter. Elizaveta, however, had a sort of dreamy look on her face, her eyes locked on the front of the room. He quickly turned his attention back to the teacher as she cleared her throat, "That was wonderful! A plus!"

"Wait- what?" Arthur was shocked- he had expected them to get in trouble, not be congratulated.

"That was absolutely wonderful! I could really feel the emotions of the people during the era! It was a wonderful presentation, but your time is up, we need to move on." She smiled at them as they both headed to their seats, Arthur still bright red and Alfred with a huge grin on his face.

-.-

The rest of class continued as normal, people giving their own presentations, though none as fiery and creative as Alfred and Arthur's.

"Wow, we really kicked butt back there," Alfred commented as he and Arthur walked out of the bathroom, having changed back into their normal clothing.

"That we did indeed." Arthur agreed, straightening his sweater vest. Alfred paused and Arthur ran into him, looking up at him questioningly.

"Look, thank you. I really needed that good grade, and there is no way I could have gotten it without you." He said, his face the picture of sincerity. Arthur quickly turned his head, breaking eye contact as he felt his face heat up once again. He cleared his throat before speaking.

"I'm sure you would have done fine without me. You really knew your stuff up there and did a great job delivering it." Arthur felt his face heat up even further with every word he spoke. Alfred grabbed his shoulders, forcing Arthur to look at his face.

"No, it's because of _you_ that I was able to do so well. Had I been paired with anyone else in that room, I would not have done nearly as well." Arthur couldn't bring himself to look away, even though his face had to have been redder than a tomato at that point. "So thank you." Alfred let Arthur's shoulders go, allowing the Brit to look away.

"Well then, I'm glad I could be of service." Arthur quickly retorted then began to walk away.

"Wait!" Arthur paused and turned back to face Alfred, "I was wondering if you wanted to get together this Friday, maybe catch a movie or something."

"I would love to." Arthur replied then dashed off before Alfred could say anything else. As he walked home, horror dawned on him as Arthur realized something. Were he and Alfred going out together? On a _date?_

-.-

**Holy schnizowitz, I finally updated! A bit longer than normal, for your reading pleasure. I plan to update at least once more before break is over.**

**Can I just say that for the William Pitt part, I _totally_ pulled out my old APUSH notebook, just to find out his name.**

**Yup, I'm just a geek like that. **

**Well, till next time, authoress out!**


End file.
